The invention relates to a radiocommunications terminal.
More precisely, the term xe2x80x9cradio(tele)communications terminalxe2x80x9d is used in non-limiting manner to cover both cordless telephone terminals and GSM-type mobile telephone terminals.
The invention is more particularly applicable to radiotelecommunications terminals which are of small size and for which it is difficult to reproduce the distance between the mouth and the ear of the user, which distance needs to be reproduced in order to enable the audio portion of the terminal to operate properly.
Usually, a radiocommunications terminal comprises a housing having a front face, a back face, and a base. The front face is generally provided with a keypad, a screen, an input opening constituting an input interface with a microphone, and an output opening constituting an output interface with an earpiece. The microphone and the earpiece are mounted inside the housing, the inlet of the microphone and the outlet of the earpiece facing respectively the input opening and the output opening.
One solution to the above-mentioned problem consists in adding a piece to the terminal so as to enable the microphone to be deployed so that the distance between the microphone and the earpiece of the terminal substantially corresponds to the distance between the mouth and the ear of the user.
In Document EP 0 651 546, that piece is in the form of a flap hinged to the base of the housing, and which, in the in-use position, serves to extend the terminal. The flap contains the microphone, and is provided with an input opening on its face that corresponds to the front face of the housing.
That document also describes another solution in which the flap is replaced with a shorter, angularly-positionable piece.
Unfortunately, those solutions require an additional mechanical piece to be added to the terminal together with mechanical link means, thereby increasing the volume and the cost of the terminal.
Furthermore, the mechanical link means are of limited life span, and, like all mechanical equipment, they are not very reliable.
The invention aims to mitigate those drawbacks.
An object of the invention is to provide a telephone terminal whose structure makes it possible to satisfy the required distance between the mouth and the ear of the user, in a manner such that the audio portion of the terminal operates properly, and without adding any additional mechanical elements to the terminal.
Another object of the invention is to provide a radiocommunications terminal whose cost and volume are low.
To this end, in a first aspect, the invention provides a radiocommunications terminal comprising a housing having a front face, a back face, and a base, the terminal further comprising a microphone and an earpiece mounted inside the housing, and being provided with at least one input opening constituting an input interface with the microphone, and at least one output opening constituting an output interface with the earpiece, wherein the input opening is on said back face.
Thus, in the normal-use position, i.e. when the user is engaged on a call and is holding the terminal in the hand, the input opening constituting the input interface with the microphone is in the vicinity of the palm of the hand, so that an acoustic waveguide is formed by the back face of the housing and by the cavity formed between the terminal and the palm of the hand.
As a result, the distance between the mouth and the ear of the user is reproduced, so that the audio portion operates properly without increasing the volume or the cost of the terminal, or reducing its reliability.
In addition, in the hands-free position, i.e. when the terminal is put down on a table, for example, the table also makes it possible to form an acoustic waveguide, so that sound is transmitted properly in this position also.
In an embodiment making it possible to place the microphone as far as possible from the earpiece, the microphone is mounted in the vicinity of a border zone between the base and the back face of the housing.
In addition, in order to obtain a further improvement in guiding the speech of the user, a recess is provided in the border zone.
This recess may have a rounded shape provided in a portion of said border zone, and extending substantially to the center of the border zone.
In another embodiment, the recess has a bevel shape.
So that it is not necessary to modify the position of the microphone in already-existing terminals, in which the microphone usually faces towards the front face of the housing, the terminal further comprises an acoustic waveguide lead-in that is provided in the housing, in the vicinity of the microphone, and that has its inlet facing the microphone and its outlet facing the input opening constituting the input interface with the microphone.
In a second aspect, the invention provides a hands-free set comprising a terminal of the invention, said set further comprising surface-forming means distinct from the terminal, and co-operating with the back face of the housing of the terminal to create an acoustic waveguide that serves to guide speech uttered by a user towards the input opening constituting the input interface with the microphone.
In an embodiment, the surface-forming means are constituted by the element against which the back face of the housing is applied.
In a third aspect, the invention provides acoustic waveguide forming means designed to be used with a terminal of the invention, and having a shape such that they co-operate with the back face of the housing of the terminal to create an acoustic waveguide making it possible to guide speech uttered by a user towards the input opening constituting the input interface with the microphone.